Poached eggs in a red wine sauce

This is probably a dish more fit for winter, but I love a poached egg and I love a red wine sauce, which we use frequently for a multitude of dishes, so we often enjoy this meal, winter or summer. It can be served as a starter or main course, consider even using some quail eggs if used for a starter.

It’s origins lie in Burgundy, a heartwarming rustic meal, to be served with some crusty bread and accompanied with the wine you’ve used in your sauce. I don’t give any specifications for the wine, but I’m leaving you with my motto: If you can’t drink the wine, you can’t cook with it either!

There are as many versions of this recipe as there are for all the classic recipes , so here is mine, worked out in the cooking class a few years ago with my good friend Lisa, who now cooks and entertains in Chicago. She had weak knees when it comes to Oeufs en meurette …and a good croissant! The eggs we could make, the croissants we simply bought at our favorite boulangerie.

Poached eggs in red wine sauce

(Oeufs en meurette)

• 1/2 cup of chopped bacon
• 1 small carrot, peeled and cut into dice
• 2 shallots, peeled and chopped
• 1 branch of celery, chopped
• a sprig of thyme and rosemary
• 2 bay leaves
• some olive olive oil and butter for sauteeing
• 500 ml of a full bodied red wine
• 1 tablespoon fo butter
• 1 tablespoon of flour
• 4 eggs at room temperature
• a tablespoon of white wine vinegar
• a clove of garlic
• a baguette
• salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Sauce: In a saucepan, add the olive oil en butter and saute the bacon with the carrots, shallots, celery, garlic, rosemary, thyme and bay leaves until the shallots are just transparent, don’t brown. Add the red wine and simmer until reduced by 1/2.
2. Blend the butter and flour to a paste(beurre manié).
3. Strain the wine and bring it back to a simmer.
4. Whisk the beurre manié into the sauce, little by little, while continuing whisking until the sauce has thickened to the consistency of cream. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
5. Eggs: Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil, add the tablespoon of vinegar. Carefully break the egg one at a time into a cup and slide gently into the boiling water, to prevent baking. Poach the eggs for 2 minutes, or until the whites are opaque. Gently lift the eggs from the water, dry on a plate covered with kitchen towel and cut off the fringes of the egg white.
6. While the eggs are poaching, rub 4 slices of baguette with the clove of garlic and grill/toast under the grill.
7. To serve: Place a slice of toast on each plate, top with a poached egg and carefully spoon the red wine sauce around the egg.
8. Finish off with some salt and freshly ground pepper and decorate with a sprig of herb. Serve immediately  with some more bread on the side.

                                                                   Serves 4 people

I’m entering this recipe for Waiter, there is something in my …sauce! of which Andrew is host.